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1.26.2008

Just got this news about Fort Worth lawyer and former judge Pete Gilfeather who occasionally came to the Wise County Courthouse:
"Pete Gilfeather passed away late this afternoon after being admitted to the hospital for injuries sustained while crossing the street entering the [Tarrant County] courthouse yesterday."
Edit: Star Telegram has a story.

1.25.2008

You know, I never post pictures of dogs, cats, or anything else that isn't human. I'm better than that. But I couldn't stop looking at this thing. The fangs. The eyes. The fingers. The fingernails. The little baby. It's like I'm paralyzed by this thing.

Now this will probably become to me what the weird rabbit was to Donnie Darko. See ya in my dreams.

This is a tough one because the story doesn't list what she is alleged to have done (other than "sexual battery.") But she's got kind of a smirk on her face that's a little bit sexy. That sways my vote.

Friday Morning Update:
5:08 a.m
- I don't think we'll know if this is an ice storm or not until after 6:00 a.m.
- The Fox 4 Weather guy is pretty smug, almost saying "I told you so" about his prediction yesterday that the metroplex would just get rain
- Hey, Channel 5 just reported from Jacksboro live with reporter Brett Johnson touching a wet car hood.
7:16 a.m.
- Worst weather predicating ever?

1.24.2008

I'm going with Channel 8 which has labeled the incoming weather as the "Bitter Blast". They are also reporting that TxDot is at "Code Red." Holy, crap!
Fox 4 News has disappointed me with Lari Barager standing besides I-35 in Fort Worth instead of being in Wise County. We have been disrespected. And we won't forget.
Speaking of Fox 4, Baron James may have the most gawd awful tie/jacket/sweater-vest combination in the history of ever. I'll post a pic tomorrow but, man, someone has to tell that guy he can't get away with that.

Paradise ISD is the first one out of the blocks with school news saying it will open at 10:00 a.m.

Not to dog the great Paradise ISD, but that's a goofy announcement. If the ice comes in like the forecast says it will, they'll have to change it to "closed." This early announcement will just cause confusion.

(Credit: Sheriff David Walker for sending along the school news. But the "goofy" opinion is all mine. He loves Paradise ISD.)

"The unemployment rate in 2001 was 4.2% it is now 5.0%. The [national] debt was $5.7 trillion, it's now $9.2 trillion. There was $261 billion dollar surplus [in the annual budget], there's now a $250 dollar deficit. Gas was $1.47 a gallon, it's now $3.02. Why should the American people continue a Republican in the White House with that kind of record?"

Heard about this today on The Ticket. If you have ever heard Van Halen's Runnin' With The Devil, you absolutely have to hear this [mp3 file] - it is David Lee Roth's isolated vocals from the original recording with no music.

Trust me, listen to all (or at least a little) of the original here before you click on the above mp3.

. . . I read this story in that portion of the Sunday Dallas Morning News. You know, that portion of the Life section where there is always an article about how a couple met, were on and off for a while, before realizing it was true love.

. . . Netflix and the United States Postal System. I reported my very defective Planet Terror DVD to Netflix yesterday and they apparently dropped a replacement immediately in the mail. And USPS gets it here within 24 hours.

(As a bonus, the second part of the flick arrived as well. These have to be the two "feel good" stories of the year.)

1.23.2008

Baylor and A&M are playing right now (10:22 p.m.) and they are now headed into the FIFTH overtime. I'm sleepy. It's not on TV. "Watching" it online for the last hour drives me insane. I think I'm headed to bed.

The National Weather Service in Fort Worth has issued a WinterStorm Watch... which is in effect from late Thursday night throughFriday morning.Sleet changing to freezing rain expected late Thursday nightthrough Friday noon along and west of a line fromSherman... Mesquite... Waco... to Temple.A Winter Storm Watch means there is a potential for significantsnow... sleet... or ice accumulations that may impact travel.

Gather around the TV sets and prepare for "Winter Blast 2008!!!" Lari Barager, get your booty up here to Wise County pronto. We need some reports and we need them badly.

Stock up on water. Stock up on pinto beans. Make sure you have a blanket, ice scraper, and perhaps some kitty litter in your trunk. Dress warmly - in layers. Make sure you have an ample supply of batteries and flashlights. Don't hit your brakes. Turn into the skid. Good lord, this is gonna be bad.

1.22.2008

Not exactly a teacher but she qualifies for posting because she is (1) a former PTA President, (2) a former prosecutor, and (3) married to a police chief. That is some trifecta.

And, maam, I can't recommend probation on this one. Totally unacceptable. Debra LaFave is the benchmark for discretionary probation. I've seen Debra LaFave. Debra LaFave could have been a friend of mine. You, maam, are no Debra LaFave.

I don't know why I feel compelled to post news that everyone will soon hear of, but this is pretty shocking. The star of Brokeback Mountain, Heath Ledger, is dead. And I'm pretty sure he had just finished filming his role as The Joker in the upcoming Batman movie. I'd seen him quite a bit lately on cable in 10 Things I Hate About You.

. . . than Wise County Commissioners. Why? Because even though Ellis County has nothing to do do with abortion law or policy, they have declared this week "Sanctity of Human Life Week." The proclamation states, in part, that the "Ellis County Commissioners Court is committed to protecting society's most vulnerable members – those born and unborn." (A note of confusion if I may: Those "born" are also society's most vulnerable? Even those Ultimate Fighting guys who, the best I can tell, were "born"?)

Commissioner Bill Dodson, who apparently thinks he is a Fundamentalist Baptist King James Only Minister instead of an elected official of a podunk county, said he is a strong supporter of the resolution.

"I won't say it's against [Roe vs.] Wade, but it's definitely trying to prevent any conception out of marriage," he said. (Uh, another note of confusion: He's wants the proclamation to prevent any conception outside of marriage? What about the conception that leads to a pretty white 8 lb. 6 oz. baby that is adopted by God fearing parents? He wants to deprive them of that? So let it be written, so let it be done?)

Anyway, Wise County Commissioners, you gonna be upstaged like that? Do you not care about the sanctity of the unborn (and, oh yeah, the born)? You gonna make us look like were a community that tolerates Wiccans? Oh, wait.

1.21.2008

I always liked this place (The Metro Cinema in Colleyville) but it is an absolute beating to get to - it's on Highway 26 in between North Richland Hills and Grapevine.

Anyway, I was there in December and something seemed very strange. First, the apathetic ticket taker informed me that "No Country For Old Men" was not showing at 7:00 p.m. despite what the theater's own website said earlier in the day. "Oh, that site changes all the time," she told me. Thanks, girl. You might want to look for a job other than in customer service.

And then, oddly, in the bar/restaurant area, there were two huge blank spaces where flat screens TVs used to be.

But I got a shocking update tonight on Fox 4 News. The place has shut down. The power has been shut off. Employee checks are bouncing. And on Thursday the Texas Comptroller's office came in and confiscated some computers for unpaid taxes.

But the theater continued to sell tickets over the weekend despite the place being locked up tighter than a drum.

I'm seeing this more and more. The early morning truck that has trouble staying in its lane. If it were a car at midnight, I would really question whether he's sober. (And that guy isn't turning onto Business 287 - he's headed straight.)

That's American downhill skier Scott Macartney crashing at the World Cup at Kitzbuehel, Austria yesterday. He's doing fine and is expected to make a full recovery.
And his helmet tracking him down was insult to injury.

1.20.2008

I don't think I've ever watched the movie the whole way through, but I remember it being released when I was in high school and the girls loved it. I still remember the night my girlfriend and her gang went to watch it at the drive-in theater in Decatur.

A faithful reader sends a link to a pdf file of about 200 pages concerning the "spaceman" crash, allegedly, in 1897 in Aurora. It seems that in 1973 there was a huge effort to try and dig around in the Aurora Cemetary to try and find the body. If you download the file (and, I'll admit, I kept looking through it far longer than I thought I would) check out the newspaper clippings from around the nation beginning at about page 100.